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Alphabe-Thursday: The Letter X: Xenomorphic

I was sort of dreading this week’s letter, as many participants in Jenny Matlock’s Alphabe-Thursday probably were. I kept thinking words that would work if I was willing to cheat a little; “eXamine” or “eXclaim” and so on.

Luckily though, Isaac and I decided to drive down to Federal Way, a town we hadn’t yet explored, and one that is only about 15 miles away. As we usually do before such an adventure, we Googled the town to see what interesting things it has to offer.

One of the things we decided to check out was the Bonsai Collection, curated by the Weyerhaeuser Company. It’s an interesting place to visit, they have 60 different individual bonsai, in a nicely laid out exhibit garden. The exhibit is mostly all outside, and on rainy days like today it makes it a very soggy experience, but cool nevertheless.

These “trees” are works of art that take years (think three decades or more) to mold into the final product. Many of them have been shaped into certain shapes or styles of bonsai, such as the cascade or semi-cascade bonsai, which is designed to mirror the trees seen clinging to cliff-sides.

And so, my entry into the Alphabe-Thursday collection is this:

Xenomorphic: adjective, meaning: in an unusual form; having a strange form.

the xenomorphic bonsai

and a triptych of some of the others:

Each tree is so different, both because of the variety of tree species used, and because of the design.

What X words can you come up with? Check out the other participants/join in the fun yourself here:

Hi Judie! Thank you! The plants were pretty amazing. I’ve seen bonsai before, but never this many, or this much variety all in one place. It was especially interesting to learn that nearly any kind of tree or plant can be trained into a bonsai. There were the traditional ones here, as well as a crab apple, wisteria, and a California Redwood! So very cool.

Thanks for your comment on my “X” post. I DID submit my story to Studio 360’s Significant Object contest, as did my son, Joey. I posted his story last Thursday. If you have not read it, PLEASE do so. It is really awesome. I look forward to more Alphabe-Thursday posts from YOU!!!

Oh, dumb me, I read that, and my brain didn’t even register that contest = submission…*shakes head* Anyway, that’s great, I think you ought to win! I am going to check out your son’s story too. I also think that if you’re so inclined there are magazines that print short stories in their publications that you could take yours to. I’m no expert, but it’s really well written, very succinct and offers a good punch at the end.

It is always enjoyable to see examples of bonsai. Each one really is unique. Some are so elegant, complex and manicured, others are almost modern in their clean lines. Thank you for sharing this with us!